


Afloat No More

by I May Age Regress (shnuffeluv)



Series: Gibbs' Family [79]
Category: NCIS
Genre: Age Play, Episode Tag, Gen, Non-Sexual Age Play, Papa Bear Jethro Gibbs, Returning Home, Season/Series 06
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-15
Updated: 2019-06-15
Packaged: 2020-05-12 13:10:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,063
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19229791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shnuffeluv/pseuds/I%20May%20Age%20Regress
Summary: Tony comes home after being stuck as Agent Afloat for four months. Everyone's happy to have a little reunion.





	Afloat No More

**Author's Note:**

> So...I thought I posted this last month and it turns out I was wrong. But I wanted to get it up before the anniversary fic, so two fics this month? I guess? Hope you all enjoy!

Gibbs was expecting the knock on his door. He hadn't gone to his basement for a drink quite yet, not that he was planning on that in the first place. He walked over to the door and smiled when he saw his two boys on the other side, already bickering. "You can't drive, Tony! It's my car! You insisted on hitching a ride, but that doesn't mean I'll let you drive!" Timmy insisted.

"Your road rage is terrible, though!" Tony shot back. "You're the one always swearing when we're on the road."

"I've gotten better at that!" Timmy defended.

"If you're saying that you've gotten better instead of denying it, that sounds like a weak argument," Tony pointed out.

Gibbs cleared his throat and said a soft, "Boys," which shut them both up immediately.

Timmy walked in the second Gibbs stepped away and headed upstairs, but Tony hesitated. "Tony," Gibbs said softly, "You okay?"

"Am I...am I still allowed? To do this?" Tony asked. "Timmy said it was okay, but I've been gone awhile, and I know things might have changed since I left..."

"Hey," Gibbs said, ushering Tony inside and hugging him. "I told you before, and I'll tell you again. I want you to bother me. That much never changed."

Tony held close to Gibbs and Gibbs felt a knot loosen in his chest, a breath release that he had been silently holding for months. "Four months, baby boy. No amount of time, let alone four months, would make me stop wanting to help you."

Only gripping Gibbs tighter, Tony cried into Gibbs' shirt.

Timmy bounded down the stairs triumphantly, shouting, "I found it! I found it! Tony!"

Tony looked over with red-rimmed eyes, and Gibbs smiled when he saw what was in Timmy's hands.

"I found your baby blanket, Tony! I know you didn't want to take it with you, so Papa was keeping it safe! It was waiting for you in the crib!" Timmy explained in a rush, holding out the blanket for Tony to take.

Tony took the blanket almost reverently and held it up to his cheek, stroking his face softly with it. A fresh round of tears welled up in his eyes, and Timmy looked alarmed. "Did we do something wrong?" he asked Gibbs.

"No, you didn't do anything wrong, and I don't think I did either. Tony's just a little overwhelmed at being home again," Gibbs explained.

"Oh," Timmy said. "Okay. Is there anything I can do to help, Papa?"

Gibbs hummed in thought. "Can you check to make sure we have the stuff for mac 'n cheese? I think Tony deserves a little something special tonight."

Tony cried more at that and Timmy nodded, heading to the kitchen. Gibbs gently led Tony up the stairs. "Come on, we should get you dressed."

Together, they went up the stairs and Gibbs went to the closet. "What would you like to wear tonight, huh?" he asked Tony.

Tony shuffled on his feet. "We're gonna need a bigger boat?" he offered hopefully.

"Yeah, okay," Gibbs said, laughing. He pulled out the requested shirt along with a pair of sweatpants. "It's getting colder, so you might want something covering your lower legs, too," he explained.

Tony simply nodded, sucking on his fingers.

Gibbs rolled his eyes affectionately and quickly helped Tony get dressed. Tony took one of Gibbs' hands in his own, and Gibbs stroked Tony's knuckles with his thumb. He knew Tony was probably going to need lots of physical and verbal reassurance tonight. But Gibbs was more than willing to give it, if it meant that Tony would get to feel at home again.

They got downstairs and Timmy had already brought out all the blocks and was building towers with them. "Tony! Do you want to help me build a castle?!" he asked excitedly.

"Sure," Tony said shyly, walking away and letting go of Gibbs' hand to sit down next to Timmy. Before Gibbs could even ask Timmy about the mac 'n cheese, Timmy answered his question. "The last box of mac n' cheese is on the counter, Papa."

"Thanks, kiddo," Gibbs said, ruffling Timmy's hair and heading to the kitchen, just in time to hear the front door of his house open and two very excited boys shouting, "Ziva!" in clear delight.

Gibbs poked his head out to find Ziva standing there, looking at the boys fondly. She turned to Gibbs. "I hope it is all right I came over? I overheard the boys talking about tonight and wanted to welcome Tony home."

"Yeah, that's fine," Gibbs said, fighting back the impulse to smile. "I should have just enough mac 'n cheese for everyone."

"May I help you cook?" Ziva asked.

Gibbs nodded. "Sure. May as well let the boys have some time to themselves. Anything on your mind?"

When both of them were in the kitchen, Ziva leaned against the counter and sighed. "I am...relieved that I get to be back here," she told him.

Gibbs wasn't surprised so much as he was confused by that statement. "Did you miss us that much?" he asked.

Ziva bit her lip and looked away. "I did miss you, but that is not the reason I am glad to be back," she said softly.

Gibbs put water on the stove to boil and turned to her. "What's eating at you?"

The sound of blocks falling and twin laughs drifted into the room and Ziva's face turned wistful, and a bit pained. "I envy you, Gibbs. You are able to have a family, even if it isn't the one you originally planned for. My father...he missed me, and was happy to see me return, but I felt...expendable. If I were to be injured or killed on a mission, it would have been my own fault, I should have been more careful. My father would grieve, for a short while, but he would move on. Here, I matter. I won't be sent anywhere simply to die for a cause."

Gibbs felt like he had just been punched in the gut. How did he respond to that? That was such a horrible thing to say, and it only made things worse that Gibbs knew Ziva believed it to be true. Whether or not that was actually the case was up for debate, but if Ziva believed it, then the truth didn't matter as much. The belief would be what fueled her actions. "Rest assured that would never happen here," Gibbs eventually settled on. "The boys would miss you too much. I would miss you too much. And you have intrinsic value as a human being that means you shouldn't be used as a pawn."

Ziva smiled at him and Gibbs inwardly sighed at figuring out the right thing to say. "Thank you," she said, voice barely above a whisper.

"It's not a problem," Gibbs said, turning back to his cooking.

The two stood in silence as they listened to Tony and Timmy chattering in the living room, something about superheroes and car chases. "Did you think he would be coming back?" Ziva asked.

"I honestly didn't know what to think," Gibbs admitted. "I'm just incredibly happy that he's here now."

Ziva nodded. "I suppose that is a good way to look at it," she said. "Worrying about the what-might-have-been's can be exhausting."

Gibbs murmured his agreement and Ziva turned to help him cook. When they had finished, Ziva served it up as Gibbs walked into the living room. Tony and Timmy were talking casually about nothing in particular, it seemed like they were currently arguing over the best color for bouncy balls. "You boys ready for dinner?" he asked.

The two immediately got on their feet and moved to the dining room, where Ziva already had places set for the four of them. As everyone settled in, Gibbs looked around and smiled. Timmy was swinging his feet with a smile and occasionally flapping his hands in his excitement. Ziva looked immensely relieved and happy to be around the team again. And Tony...Tony looked like he might cry tears of joy at any second. "So, what were you two boys playing out there?" Gibbs asked.

Timmy lit up and said, "We were playing superheroes! Except the superheroes didn't have, like, super powers like flying or teleporting or whatever. They had to chase the bad guys in their cars and they had to fight the normal way, but their super powers were the way they could always tell what their partners were thinking and could move around them in fights without any thought!"

"Kinda like our team," Gibbs said with a knowing smile.

Timmy ducked his head and his ears tinged pink. "I just wanted Tony to remember that we're still here for each other, no matter what."

"Did it work, Tony?" Gibbs asked.

Tony shrugged and mumbled, "Yeah, I guess." Then, a little louder, he said, "I wasn't too worried about us being a team again. I'm more worried that I'll hafta leave again."

"We won't allow it," Ziva said firmly. "If you leave, I'll find a way to go with you."

"I can hack into the records to make sure it says you're staying with us," Timmy offered.

Gibbs cleared his throat softly. "Touching as that is, I believe Vance feels he made his point. He wanted to show his power, and he wanted to find the mole. Both of those things have been accomplished. I don't think anyone will be going anywhere they don't want to."

An unknown tension in the air lifted at that declaration.  _Everyone just wanted to be around each other and feel safe again,_  Gibbs mused, and he resolved to help his kids feel safe around work as well as home.

Everyone chatted for a while longer, talking about everything Timmy and Tony had done and had planned, and Gibbs noticed the mischievous glint Timmy had in his eye that told Gibbs he might be in a smidge of trouble now that Timmy's best friend had returned.

When dinner was done, everyone took their plates to the kitchen before Timmy and Tony returned to their games and Ziva and Gibbs retreated to the couch to watch them. Their quiet conversation was a bit more serious; what would happen back at work, how they expected to deal with Vance, and what they should expect with upcoming cases.

Soon Timmy and Tony were yawning, and Gibbs ushered them to bed. Ziva hung back, but didn't retreat to the other guest room. He arched an eyebrow at her as he left the nursery. "Something else on your mind?"

"I need to go back home and get unpacked," Ziva said. "I did, however, enjoy the time I spent here tonight."

"I'll walk you to your car," Gibbs said.

Once the two were at the doorway, Ziva stopped him. "I can make it to the car on my own. I did, however, want to speak to you a little more privately," she confessed.

Gibbs nodded, silently prompting her to continue.

"Thank you for reassuring me tonight. I wasn't aware how badly I needed that reassurance until I heard it." She shuffled on her feet, looking decidedly uncertain, and Gibbs wasn't sure if he'd ever seen such vulnerability from her before. "It meant a lot to me."

"It's what I'd do for any of my team," Gibbs said. "I want to make sure all of you, my kids or not, are safe and happy."

Ziva smiled. "Good night, Dad--Gibbs! Sorry," she said, eyes widening at the slip up.

Gibbs just smiled warmly and pretended to not notice the slip-up, even though his heart felt like it might burst from happiness. "Good night, Ziver."

Ziva nodded, went to her car, and slipped away into the night.

Gibbs went back to his room to find Tony sitting on the edge of his bed. "Can I sleep with Papa?" he asked hopefully.

"Of course you can, kid," Gibbs said, getting ready for bed in less than a minute and letting Tony snuggle up to him on the mattress.

Neither of them spoke, but they didn't need to. Their presence was enough for each other. Gibbs replayed Ziva's words over and over in his head, until he fell asleep with a small, almost relieved smile on his face.


End file.
